


Does the Walker Choose the Path, or the Path the Walker?

by For_the_love_of_fiction



Series: What's Meant to be Will Always Find a Way [2]
Category: Veronica Mars (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fix-It, Not Beta Read, Season/Series 01, Sequel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-21
Packaged: 2020-10-06 21:16:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20513618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/For_the_love_of_fiction/pseuds/For_the_love_of_fiction
Summary: A chance encounter one night is enough to knock down the dominoes, one after another, changing the fates of a young PI and her estranged friends.Title is a quote by Garth Nix from Sabriel.





	1. Meet John Smith: The Week After

**Author's Note:**

> This is a fix-it work, and as such there are disclaimers that I would like to address. 
> 
> 1\. There will be scenes that are very familiar. I'm not going to write out any that don't have direct bearing on my telling of the story, but there will be scenes that are almost straight from the show.
> 
> 2\. I have read A LOT of fix-it stories. From this and other fandoms. There are (most likely) inevitably changes that I'll decide on that someone else has done either because they a) make sense for the story or b) just where the stories converge. This is in no way intentional. I'm not going to avoid doing something just because I know someone else has done it, but I'm not going to try and copy anybody. 
> 
> 3\. I have limited time to write, this means that I'm doing my best, but for me, fix-it works mean that I'm intently studying the original material to see exactly which details I want to keep and which I want to change and which I want to discard entirely. This slows me down, so please be patient with me. 
> 
> 4\. Reviews on my previous story in this series, Should I Stay or Should I Go? have directly impacted my desire to try and eek out time to make this, so I'd like to thank every single person who took time out of their days to review. I used my lunch breaks and every spare time I had to write this first chapter. Thank you deeply from the bottom of my heart for inspiring me.

Inspirational Quote of the Day:

“When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.” 

― Helen Keller

\------

The next day at school, Veronica avoided Logan Echolls like the plague. She had no idea if he even really remembered what happened on the beach, but she wanted to avoid any reaction from him. He’d either lash out due to his vulnerability, or completely ignore that anything happened. She wasn’t sure what would be worse. 

  


When lunch rolled around, she briefly debated hiding out in the library or somewhere where the 09er crew couldn’t see her, but it really wasn’t worth looking like a coward. She slid into her usual seat, facing the 09ers, to stave off any surprises. She took the ticket out of her bag, and held it, staring at the photo, hoping something would pop out at her. It wasn’t the first time that day that she had taken it out to look at it, and the creases in the paper were starting to wear. Some sand still stuck to the paper, from the unfortunate run in with Logan, and had stubbornly refused to be brushed off. 

  


Except for the obvious implications of the lack of alibis’ and the wrong time of death, nothing new hit her. The photo of Lily laughing and singing hit her again, and she had a brief flashback to one of the times Lily had driven her to school. Lily had loved to crank up the volume on the radio and sing at full volume whenever she drove. 

  


Wallace slid into the seat next to her, “What up, V?” 

  


Veronica shook herself out of her stupor and gave Wallace a weak smile, “Nothing much, Papa Bear.”

  


As she suspected, the nickname distracted Wallace from the paper that she tucked back into her bag. “Come on, V. Don’t do this to me!”

  


“Hey, look,” she gestured to the 09er table where Caitlin had just appeared. The reception was frosty, felt all the way over at Veronica and Wallace’s table. Every time Caitlin tried to sit down, someone moved into the space without a word, sending a clear message. Logan, who was at his place of honor, didn’t even bother glancing her way. It only took two tries for seating before Caitlin gave up and walked away. She tried to give off an ‘I don’t care’ vibe, but anyone who was watching knew that she was faking it. 

  


Logan watched her walk away, the first indication he gave of Caitlin’s presence. As he turned back, he caught Veronica’s eye and held it for a moment. She wasn’t quite sure of what it meant, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as she was fearing. Logan broke eye contact and went back to whatever he had been talking with Duncan about.

  


“Hate to be her,” remarked Wallace, turning back to Veronica.

  


“Yeah,” Veronica said, a bit wistful after her trip down memory lane just minutes before. “That would suck.” Before Wallace could make any comments bringing her further down the unwanted memory trip, she said brightly, “Come on, it’s almost time for English.”

  


She was glad when he took the hint and grabbed his things. Sometimes it was great having a male friend. They didn’t pry into emotional baggage the way female friends did. 

  


“Okay, did you get that essay done? I’m still having trouble with the conclusion.” Wallace said in an equally bright tone.

  


\-----

  


After the final bell, Veronica walked to her car slowly, digging through her bag for her keys. 

  


“Hey,” Troy said, catching up to Veronica and walking beside her, “You didn’t make it Saturday night.”

  


“Well, I guess I didn’t feel even a little bit wrong or sorry.” Veronica said, with none of her usual quippy tone. 

  


“Well, a wise man once said that a no is like yes, except with different letters and arranged in a different order and spoken out loud. It disappears on the wind.” Troy made a motion with his hand, as if it was flying. 

  


Veronica smiled slightly. “Maybe next time.”

  


“I’ll hold you to that,” with one last smile, he took off for his car. 

  


“Yeah, cause that wasn’t creepy at all.” 

  


Veronica jumped slightly, as Logan spoke in her ear. “And I guess you’d be the expert on creepy, listening to other people’s conversations.” She turned around and gave him a glare. 

  


“Come on, really? A no is like a yes, but different? That doesn’t throw up any red flags for you?” 

  


There was that damned smirk, the one that made Veronica want to punch Logan in the face. “What do you want, Logan?”

  


His smirk faltered and he looked a bit uncomfortable. “Look, I don’t really remember too much about last night, but I did want to thank you for letting Backup stay.”

  


She wasn’t really sure what to say to that, but was saved by Dick yelling for Logan. He gave her one final look, before turning to leave with Dick. 

  


\-----

  


A few days later, Veronica was watching Troy walk away after a short conversation, when someone bumped roughly into her, knocking all of her books to the ground. 

  


“Thanks, man,” she grumbled sarcastically. It could have been an accident, but she was so used to being treated like the punching bag of the school, that she wasn’t sure. She squatted down to gather up her books, when someone stopped to help her. Looking up to thank them, she was struck speechless when it was Logan, clad in his usual bright orange, handing her back her fallen books. Duncan was behind him, giving her a sympathetic look. Veronica could only stare, dumbfounded as they walked away as if nothing was out of the ordinary. 

  


What had just happened? 

  


\----

  


Veronica sat up in bed, jolting awake from her dream. Her alarm blared in her ear, annoying and loud. She ran her hand through her hair, trying to get her thoughts together. It didn’t help, so she got up and went to the bathroom to splash cold water on her face. 

  


She glanced at the mirror and rubbed at her eyes, trying to dislodge the dream from her mind. It lingered like a bad smell, although the feelings it created were not unpleasant. Just unwanted. 

  


Her dream had started out like any hot-blooded teenager’s dream. She had been making out with a guy in the backseat of a car. His hands had threaded through her hair and made their way down to her waist. Then he had ripped into her shirt, unbuttoning the first few buttons and ghosting his hands across her breasts. She had moved from his mouth to his neck, planting kisses and nipping at his neck. He pulled back to look at her, and she had looked into the eyes of Logan Echolls. 

  


The sound of crashing in the kitchen finally dispelled the feelings that had been left over from the dream. She shook her head and then went to meet her dad. 

  


“Hey honey,” he greeted her, “Backup got into the trashcan this morning. Help me clean it up, while I make breakfast?”

  


Indeed, the trashcan was on its side, the contents spilling across the kitchen floor, and Backup looking contrite on the couch. 

  


Veronica laughed, “sure, Dad.”

  


\-----

  


It had been a week since the unfortunate encounter on the beach, and Logan still couldn’t get it out of his head. Sure, the details were fuzzy due to the downed fifth of tequila, but he did remember a warm body, Backup, soothing eyes, also Backup, and a surprisingly reassuring voice, from Veronica Mars of all people. 

  


Bits and pieces had been coming back to him all week, and he had groaned out loud in his history class when he remembered sharing his thoughts on his exes. He had been trying to ignore Veronica ever since, and except for the day he thanked her, and the day he had lost his mind and helped her to pick up her books, he had been successful. 

  


Duncan’s newfound voice had been very helpful in distracting him from his thoughts. Over the past week, Duncan had been a lot more vocal and engaged. Logan dared to hope that he was getting his best friend back. 

  


They were currently walking down the hallways of school and a small blonde head caught Logan’s eye. She was currently talking to Troy about something, and he looked thrilled. 

  


“So, did you hook up with Shelly last night?” Logan asked, in a desperate bid to distract himself. 

  


“Uh,” Duncan replied, “she’s a talker. She’s a talker, you know? Turns out she has conflicted feelings towards her new stepmom and the color scheme the woman’s chosen for the family-”

  


This was not helping. “I hate it when they talk!” Logan interjected. He looked up to look at Duncan, but his eyes went right past his friend to Veronica, who was still talking to Troy. 

  


“Yeah, I know it.” 

  


Well, if that line of questioning wasn’t distracting enough, possibly directing Duncan’s attention to it would be. “Hey,” he jutted his head towards the two, “have you noticed that the new kid in town has, uh, been all over your trailer-park ex?” He knew, as soon as it came out of his mouth, that it was the wrong thing to say. Not only would Duncan object to the words, he felt almost bad about bad mouthing her just after she sat and talked with him on a day where he really needed somebody. But there was a current status quo, and he was going to keep it.

  


“Let it go, Logan,” Duncan predictably said. He swung his bag over his shoulder, presumably looking for something. 

  


“Okay, Nowhere Man, you be the fool on the hill, see if I care.” Glib was the way to go. Logan was safe in the world of glib. Duncan swayed on his feet, and Logan finally took his eyes off of Veronica. Duncan was sweating suddenly and looking a bit green. “Dude, you don’t look so hot.” 

  


Duncan looked like he was going to respond, but then suddenly booked it to the bathroom, leaving his backpack at Logan’s feet. 

  


Concerned, but also glad to have an excuse to get away from his tiny blonde problem, Logan picked up Duncan’s bag and sauntered down the hall to lean on the wall to the girl’s bathroom. He put down his backpack next to him. Then, he dug around in Duncan’s bag. There was a sketchbook that Duncan had, and Logan grabbed it to flip through the latest sketches. There wasn’t really anything lately that really caught his eye, but it served to pass the time until Duncan finally came out of the bathroom.

  


“You okay?” he asked, with some concern, putting the sketchbook back into the bag. 

  


“Never better.” Duncan replied, grabbing the bag from Logan, who reached down to retrieve his own bag from the floor. 

  


Movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention and he turned his head to see Veronica dragging some freshman behind her. His eyebrow raised slightly as she pushed him into the girl’s room.

  


“That girl is seriously whack,” the comment came out as he walked away, shaking his head. Late night chat or not, he wasn’t sure if he understood the girl who used to be his friend. It was entirely possible that after they no longer had Lily as the common thread, they really didn’t have anything in common. It was a thought that he had to shove to the back of his head, as he and Duncan had to get to English. 


	2. Meet John Smith: Back to the Beach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 2, a few weeks after I hoped to get it out. :)
> 
> Edited to add the quote.

Inspirational Quote of the Day:

“Words are easy, like the wind; Faithful friends are hard to find.” 

  
― William Shakespeare, The Passionate Pilgrim

\-------

It was late in the day, and Veronica was walking down the quad when she saw Troy. Embarrassment flooded through her as she thought of their failed date the other day. She froze in place, debating with herself. The urge to duck and run was strong, but she had so few people who actually talked to her, she didn’t want to lose another because she was spazzing. 

_ Come on, Veronica. You can do this. Now, before you chicken out. _

“Troy! Wait up!” It was out of her mouth before she could finish her thought. Holding her bag, so it wouldn’t bounce too much, she jogged a bit to catch up with the boy. “Wait up!”

“Don’t run, Veronica. People might think that you’re desperate.” 

He kept his tone even, but she could tell that he wasn’t happy with her. She tried a joke to get rid of some tension. “That would be a step up, reputation wise.” 

Troy paused. Would she be forgiven? She thought she saw the beginnings of a smile or a smirk, and let out a breath when he replied, “I guess that depends on who you’re asking.”

They kept walking, heading towards the sports fields. Veronica wasn’t sure about how to start this conversation. Her reputation was in shatters and she really didn’t know how much of it was what drew Troy to her in the first place. They had had a really good time on their date, but she was concerned about his impressions of her. 

“I think,” she started hesitantly, “I might have given you the wrong impression. I had a really great time, I just…”

“It’s just that you need, and you know, you get to fill in the blank here, A, time, B, space-”

She cut him off with a kiss. 

\-------

Logan had not been doing very well in trying to ignore thoughts of Veronica. As his memory had returned, so had the vision of her, tears in her eyes, yelling at her that she had also loved Lily. He was having a hard time dispelling the guilty feeling that came with it. 

He’d hoped that some time with the guys would put his thoughts on hold, but a big absence was bothering him, and reminding him too much of the small blonde girl. 

He pulled out his flask, filled with more tequila, and tried for casual, “Hey, uh, I thought your boy toy Troy was going to join us for happy hour this afternoon. You don’t suppose that he got waylaid by Veronica, do you?”

Duncan suddenly grabbed the flask out of Logan’s hand as he was about to take a drink. For a second, Logan actually thought Duncan might hit him. Duncan had been so emotionless since Lily’s death, that Logan was actually glad that something was finally getting to him. When Duncan’s face broke into a smile, and he made some dumb joke, Logan even listen, he was just relieved at seeimg some of his old friend back. 

He made a show of grabbing for the flask, but then sat down after Duncan started singing Grease. “What has gotten into you, man?” Not that he wanted Duncan to go back to his zombification, but his singing was awful. Successfully distracted, Logan smiled. Definitely not something about Duncan that he had missed. Both Kane children had loved singing and karaoke, but only Lily had been decent. 

“Hey, check it out!” Dick’s voice cut through the fun and they looked to see him helping Chris up not the railings of the bleachers. After getting his balance, Chris did a backflip off. The thud of him hitting the ground was loud, and startled the group of guys into rushing to the railing to see what had happened. The slight panic was covered up quickly by lots of whoops and hollers. 

As Chris got off of the mats that he had landed on, movement caught Logan and Duncan’s eye. 

_ Speak of the devil, and all that, _ thought Logan. As the rest of the guys started wandering back to the middle of the bleachers, Duncan and Logan stalled. Logan was sure that he knew why Duncan was watching, but he wasn’t really sure why he had stopped. Even though Duncan had been the one to pull the plug on their relationship, Duncan had never quite gotten over Veronica. 

He told himself that he was trying to be a supportive friend, helping Duncan get past his failed relationship, but the flare of anger that he felt didn’t really fit that theory. Possibly it was the vibe he had been getting from Troy. Something was off with the kid. The line he had overheard when Troy had been talking to Veronica was really bothering him. _ A no is like a yes, but in a different order? _ Veronica was usually such a smart girl, how was Troy really pulling the wool over her eyes.

Logan was still wrapped up in his thoughts, walking back to the guys when Duncan shoved his flask back at him and did his own swan dive off of the bleachers. For a second, Logan stared at the spot where Duncan had disappeared, but the noise of everyone moving got him to dive towards the railing once more. 

Duncan was sprawled on the concrete, Veronica rushing towards him. Duncan’s hand came up to his head, and Logan could see the tell-tale red of blood.

“You okay, man?” Logan called, concerned but still trying to be cool. All the other guys were laughing at Duncan’s spectacular failure of a jump, but his knowledge of head wounds were creeping up on him. He passed his flask to Dick and then started down the bleachers, keeping his nonchalance. 

“He needs to go to a hospital,” Veronica said, looking disapprovingly at the group who were still jeering.

“Hey, this will help. Duncan, open your mouth!” Dick dumped the contents of the flask on the three that were on the ground. If looks could kill, Logan was sure that Dick would drop dead on the spot. 

He got to the bottom and moved to take ahold of Duncan. Troy grabbed Duncan’s other side, and Veronica looked less than pleased to be pushed out of the way. “Go start the car, tiny blonde one,” Logan said to placate her. 

From the look she gave him, it didn’t really work, but she moved ahead of them to her car, nonetheless. 

“Death defying stunts, gushing head wound, you’re the man, brother.” Duncan and Troy laughed, but Logan only gave a phony smile in response. Something about Troy really bothered him, but he still wasn’t sure what it was. 

“And I almost stuck the landing,” Duncan replied, smiling. 

They placed him in the front passenger seat, and then Logan vaulted over the side to settle in the back. Troy leaned over the side of the car towards Veronica. “You sure you don’t want some help?”

Veronica was too busy trying to make sure that Duncan wasn’t bleeding everywhere to give Troy more than a passing glance. “No. Thanks. I’ve got it.” She flicked her eyes to the rearview mirror where she could see Logan lounging in the back. “You can go too, Logan.”

“Nah, I think I’ll stick around. See the show. Maybe get some popcorn,” he smirked. 

“Whatever, I don’t have time to argue with you.” She turned to Duncan in concern, “Put your seatbelt on. And hold the towel tighter.” 

They’re about halfway to the doctor’s office when Duncan turns to Veronica. “Remember how things used to be?”

There is silence in the car for a few minutes. Logan is lost in a memory of the Fab Four, when he hears Veronica’s harsh response. 

“Not really, no.”

The silence was heavier after that. 

By the time Veronica pulled the car into the doctor’s parking lot, she was ready to just hand the wheel over to Logan and tuck and roll out of the car. She pulled up to the front door and let out Logan and Duncan, the former holding up the latter. The two ambled up to the front door, and Veronica drove away. Logan may have turned his back on Veronica, but he was a very loyal friend and would make sure that Duncan got treatment. 

\-----

It was a day or so before Veronica ran into Duncan again. He was walking down the hallway, Logan following behind. 

She debated in her head for a few seconds before approaching Duncan, “Hey, how’s your head?”

Duncan stared at her for a few moments blankly before replying, “It’s better.”

He ambled off, and Veronica caught Logan’s eye. Logan looked conflicted, and started after Duncan, before turning and looking back at Veronica. “He’s been like that since the doctor’s. I think I heard something about them changing around his medicine. I dunno. Guess Zombie Donut is back.”

He walked off before Veronica could reply. 

\------

Saturday morning dawned bright and Veronica had a nice breakfast with her dad before she headed out on her long trip. Keith was leaving for Bakersfield to catch another bail jumper, so Veronica was reasonably sure that she could get to Phoenix and back without any problems. 

It was a ten hour round trip, without traffic, and there was always traffic, so Veronica made sure to leave before 11, grabbing some snacks for the road. 

\-----

After the spectacular failure of a trip, Veronica drove back into town. It was almost midnight, but she did not want to go home yet. The memories of her mother at the apartment, few as they were, were just too much for her. She had left in high hopes, visions of bringing her mother home flashing through her head. The disappointment was just too much to bear.

She ended up driving aimlessly for a bit, stopping in some of her old haunts. She drove by Lily’s house, wishing that she could call her best friend. She drove by Logan’s house. He had always been second on her list of people to go to. No longer. 

She pulled up in front of Troy’s house and pulled out her cell. She hovered over his name for a moment. She needed something, someone to help her get through this, but how well did she really know Troy? ‘

Putting down the cell, Veronica drove out to Dog Beach and parked. She got out and walked down to the water, on the edge, just staring into the darkness. Tears were streaming down her face, but she was resisting a full breakdown in public. 

When her mother left, it had been shortly after the ousting of her father from his job. After Lily died, it had only been three months before they had to move into their current apartment, due to the changes in their financial situation. Her mom had left shortly after. 

Somehow, lost in thought, Veronica had wandered back to the dunes, and was now sitting in the same spot where Logan had been sitting during their chat the other day.

_ Think of the devil _, Veronica thought, turning towards Logan, who was ambling into the dunes with a bottle of tequila in his hand. 

He stopped, seeing her sitting there. She looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes. She could feel his indecision. Would he pretend not to see her? Make cutting comments? 

She started when the bottle was shoved into her vision, Logan plopping down on the sand beside her. Not what she expected. She took the bottle anyway, hoping to signal for the cease-fire, but she didn’t say anything.

He followed her example and they sat there, passing the bottle back and forth for a long time.

The bottle was almost empty when her voice cut through the silence. “You said the other day that I don’t hold things from our friendship over your head, like your mother.”

He grunted, looking into the sand at his feet. “Look, I don’t really remember everything from that night.”

“That’s fine, but I need to say this.” 

He shrugged, and took another drink, still not looking in her direction, which was fine with her, as she didn’t want to look at him when she was talking either. 

“I told you about lots of things when we were friends. Things that could easily be used against me. Insecurities, relationship problems, things like that. But you don’t really use those against me either. I’ve been thinking about it. You never mentioned my mother until after she left and it became public knowledge. So… thanks.” She took her last drink and handed the bottle back over to him. “You’re a jackass still, but thanks.”

She got up a bit unsteadily, and made her way back to her car. Veronica was too drunk to drive, but she wanted to get her things before making the long trek back to her apartment. As far as she could tell, Logan had stayed where he was in the dunes. 

It hadn’t been the support she wanted, but she felt better than she had an hour ago. Funny how she felt better after talking with Logan Echolls. Life was funny like that. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't know when the next chapter is going up. I'm working on actually outlining and shit, and I'm getting PTSD (Post-Traumatic School Disorder). I got pretty decent grades in English at school. But only when I wrote things last minute. The minute I tried to plan or revise, my solid B average was dropped to a D or so. I tend to overthink. So my plan is to outline and work out the story without shooting myself in the foot. 
> 
> I did have to delete a scene in this chapter, I was going to have a scene at the doctor's but I overthought it, and it was BAD. This was a better choice. 
> 
> I'm currently searching for a beta, if anyone knows where I can find one, let me know! :)

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to once again thank everyone who has left reviews. 
> 
> I really love feedback, both positive and critical. I'm trying to become a better writer, and every bit helps.


End file.
